Abronia pogonantha (Mojave Sand Verbena)

Overview

Vulnerable

Common Names

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Common Names in English:

Mojave Sand Verbena, Mojave Sandverbena

Description

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Family Nyctaginaceae

Herbs, shrubs , trees , or sometimes spiny vines . Leaves opposite, alternate, or whorled ; stipules absent; petiole usually present, well defined; leaf blade simple , herbaceous or slightly fleshy , margin entire. Inflorescences mostly terminal , less often axillary , of cymes, umbels, or verticils , sometimes 1-flowered or fasciculate, often grouped into panicles; bracts often inconspicuous, sometimes forming calyxlike involucre, or large and brightly colored . Flowers bisexual , rarely unisexual or polygamous, actinomorphic . Perianth constricted beyond the ovary, base persistent , closely enclosing ovary which appears inferior, limb petaloid beyond constriction, tubular , funnelform , or campanulate , apex 5-10-lobed, lobes plicate or valvate in bud, persistent or caducous . Disk absent. Stamens (1-) 3-5(-many), hypogynous, free or connate at base, involute in bud; anthers 2-loculed, dehiscence longitudinal . Ovary superior, 1-loculed; ovule 1. Style 1; stigma globose . Fruit an achenelike anthocarp enclosed by persistent perianth, ribbed or winged , often glandular . Seed 1; endosperm present; embryo straight or curved .

About 30 genera and 300 species: tropics and subtropics, mainly in tropical America; six genera (two introduced ) and 13 species (one endemic, three introduced) in China.[1]

Genus Abronia

Herbs, annual or perennial , sometimes cespitose or appearing acaulescent , usually viscid-pubescent, from slender to stout taproot (extensively rhizomatous in Abronia bolackii). Stems prostrate to erect , unarmed , without glutinous bands on internodes. Leaves usually basal and cauline (all basal in A. bigelovii and A. nana), unequal in each pair, petiolate ; blade ± thick and succulent, base usually asymmetric . Inflorescences axillary (appearing scapose in A. bigelovii and A. nana), pedunculate , capitate clusters , with peripheral flowers usually opening first; receptacle slightly rounded to conic, without pedicel-like projections; bracts persistent , not accrescent , 5-10, distinct , forming involucre, lanceolate to broadly ovate , thinly papery or scarious , translucent , occasionally thin and green. Flowers bisexual , chasmogamous ; perianth radially symmetric , funnelform or salverform , constricted distal to ovary, abruptly expanded to 5-lobed limb; stamens 5-9, included ; styles included; stigmas linear . Fruits winged or not, usually fusiform or turbinate , in profile rhombic , cordate, or obdeltate, coriaceous , glabrate to viscid puberulent ; wings 2-5, opaque , subtly veined, not or only slightly extending beyond apex or base of body, distal margins sometimes dilated and flattened, broader than lamina, interior hollow, forming cavity , or filled with spongy tissue ; sulci smooth or slightly rugose .

Species ca. 20: North America, Mexico.

Mature to near-mature fruits are usually required for identification of Abronia species because of the variation of vegetative structures within each taxon . Abronia appears to be in a state of active evolution. Cross-pollination readily occurs in the greenhouse, producing a variety of hybrids. Hybridization occasionally occurs in the field .[2]

Physical Description

Species Abronia pogonantha

Plants annual . Stems decumbent to ascending , little to moderately branched, elongate , glandular-pubescent . Leaves: petiole 0.8-4 cm; blade ovate to oblong-ovate, 2-5 × 1.5-3.5 cm, margins entire to ± sinuate and undulate , surfaces glandular-pubescent. Inflorescences: peduncle longer than subtending petiole; bracts lanceolate to broadly ovate, 4-9 × 1.8-6 mm, papery , puberulent to glandular-pubescent, often villous basally; flowers 12-24. Perianth: tube rose red, at least basally, 10-20 mm, limb white to pink, 6-8 mm diam. Fruits winged , broadly cordate or ± round in profile , 4-6 × 4-6 mm, coriaceous , apex deeply notched with small beak ; wings 2(-3), infrequently partially folded together, without dilations, interior spongy . [source]

Habit: Forb/herb

Flowers: Bloom Period: February, March, April, May, June, July. • Flower Color: lavender, pink, violet

Size/Age/Growth

Size: 6-12" tall.

Habitat

Sandy soils, Joshua tree desert scrub ; 100-1600 m [3].

Biology

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Reproduction

Duration: Annual

Growth

Culture: Space 15-18" apart.

Soil: Minimum pH: 5.6 • Maximum pH: 6.5

Sunlight: Sun Exposure: Full Sun .

Moisture: Drought Tolerance: High

Temperature: Cold Hardiness: 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b, 10a, 10b. (map)

Taxonomy

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Domain: Eukaryota () - Whittaker & Margulis,1978 - eukaryotes
- Kingdom: Plantae () - Haeckel, 1866 - Plants
  - Subkingdom: Viridaeplantae () - Cavalier-Smith, 1981
    - Phylum: Tracheophyta () - Sinnott, 1935 Ex Cavalier-Smith, 1998 - Vascular Plants
      - Subphylum: Euphyllophytina ()
        Infraphylum: Radiatopses () - Kenrick & Crane, 1997
        Class: Magnoliopsida () - Brongniart, 1843 - Dicotyledons
        Subclass: Caryophyllidae () - Takhtajan, 1967
        Superorder: Caryophyllanae () - Takhtajan, 1967
        Order: Caryophyllales () - Perleb, 1826
        Suborder: Phytolaccineae ()
        Family: Nyctaginaceae () - A.l. De Jussieu, 1789, Nom. Cons. - Four O'clock Family
        Tribe: Abronieae ()
        Genus: Abronia () - A.L. de Jussieu, 1789 - Sand-verbena [Greek abros, delicate or graceful]
        Specific epithet: pogonantha - Heimerl, Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 11: 87, plate 2, fig. 4. 1889.
        Botanical name: - Abronia pogonantha

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Publishing author : Heimerl Publication : Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 11: 87, pl. 2 1889An accepted name in the RHS Horticultural Database.

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Abronia

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 120 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus. Here are just 100 of them:

More Info

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Notes

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Contributors

"Abronia pogonantha". in Flora of North America Vol. 4 Page 61, 64, 66. Published by Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org.
Bisby FA, Roskov YR, Orrell TM, Nicolson D, Paglinawan LE, Bailly N, Kirk PM, Bourgoin T, van Hertum J, eds (2008). Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2008 Annual Checklist Taxonomic Classification. CD-ROM; Species 2000: Reading, U.K.
Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed November 12, 2007. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from 2 providers.

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal November 12, 2007:

Berkeley Natural History Museums, University and Jepson Herbaria DiGIR provider
USDA PLANTS, USDA PLANTS Database

Identifiers

Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 2646075
Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: ITS-19570
Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 13730067
Globally Unique Identifier: urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:604009-1
Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 19570
International Plant Names Index (IPNI) ID: 101-2
Natural Heritage Network Species Identifier: PDNYC010L0
U.S.D.A. Plant Symbol: ABPO
Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 71133

Footnotes

Dequan Lu & Michael G. Gilbert "Nyctaginaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 5 Page 430. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
Leo A. Galloway "Abronia". in Flora of North America Vol. 4 Page 16, 61. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
"Abronia pogonantha". in Flora of North America Vol. 4 Page 61, 64, 66. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]

Abronia pogonantha

Overview

Common Names

Description

Family Nyctaginaceae

Genus Abronia

Physical Description

Species Abronia pogonantha

Size/Age/Growth

Habitat

Biology

Reproduction

Growth

Taxonomy

Notes

Similar Species

Members of the genus Abronia

More Info

Further Reading

Notes

Contributors

Data Sources

Identifiers

Footnotes